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which we are presented in the Acts of the Apostles, Mr. Haldane conceives has been entirely misunderstood by some who have given expositions of it. His view of the subject we shall submit to our readers, as at least well worthy of consideration.

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near to Jerusalem, and had, it appears, intercourse with the people of Israel. He was of good report among all the nation of the Jews; and it is repeatedly noted, that he fasted and prayed at the ninth hour, which was the hour of offering the evening sacrifice, and one of the stated hours of prayer. He thus looked towards God's holy temple: he worshipped God as Enoch, and Noah, and Abraham, and Simeon, and Anna, and all those who waited for the consolation of Israel. Besides, Cornelius, as we see from Acts x. 36, knew the word which God sent to Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ,' although it had not been hitherto addressed to the Gentiles. Till Peter went to him, Jesus had not been preached to them as the Messiah. Before this, it was only neces-sary for them to believe in the Messiah

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"The case of Cornelius is sometimes adduced to prove that the prayers and alms of men not addressing God through the Gospel, come up for a memorial before him; and that persons, who are ignorant of the Gospel, may work righteousness which is accepted by him. But this proceeds from a mistaken view of the passage of Scripture where Cornelius is spoken of. From the first promise to Adam, the true worshippers of God approached him through the Go-to come; but after he did come, and spel, which was first proclaimed to Adam: on every other ground they were rejected. By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous.' The sacrifice of animals was a representation of the sacrifice of Christ; and the offering of them implied a confession of guilt, and a reliance on that substitution which God would provide. Whoever lost sight of this, was not a spiritual and acceptable worshipper. By the Mosaic dispensation, and by the spirit of prophecy given to Israel, an increase of light was vouch safed. Many, through the means thus afforded, worshipped God in spirit and in truth before the coming of the Messiah; and whoever did so, was accept ed by him: All others, except such as retained the knowledge of God through tradition, worshipped a god of their own imagination. We accordingly find that the Apostles addressed the Gentiles who were converted, as persons who had been formerly without God and without hope. If this be the fact, according to the uniform tenor of Scripture, and if no example to the contrary can be shewn, it remains for those who speak of Cornelius as ignorant of the promised salvation, to shew that he was so: and as the case of one in that situation being notwithstanding an accept able worshipper, would be completely anomalous, it would require very clear proof. But there is not the shadow of proof of this, or any ground on which to ascertain that he did not worship the true God of Israel. Cornelius lived

was proclaimed to Gentiles as well as to Jews, then it was indispensable that they should believe that Jesus was the Christ. Accordingly, Cornelius was informed by the angel, that the person he was directed to send for would tell him words whereby he and all his house should be saved.' This does not imply that he was not accepted before; but now, as God had vouchsafed further light, and given a further command, it was indispensably necessary that he should receive and obey it; just as it is necessary for any believer to obey the will of God, in any part which he had not known before, as soon as he understands it. Cornelius was a spiritual worshipper of God under the old dispensation; and, like the Ethiopian Eunuch, and many others, was waiting for the Messiah, who, when he should come, was to tell his people all things,' and who was set for the fall and rising again of many in Israel, that the thoughts of many hearts might be revealed.' All in Israel, and others besides, professed to be looking and waiting for the Méssiah; but his appearance was to be the touchstone: it would shew' who should abide the day of his coming, and who should stand when he appeared; for he should be like a refiner's fire.' The case of Cornelius, then, forms no exception to that universal truth, which the Scriptures declare, of the way in which man shall be just with God." Vol, II. pp. 303-307.

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In confirmation of these remarks of Mr. Haldane, it might perhaps

be alleged, that it appears, from the Apostle Peter's address to Cornelius and his assembled friends, that his and their deficiency respected mainly the knowledge of the fact that Jesus of Nazareth was the promised Deliverer; for it is this which St. Peter seems to have set forth and pressed upon them. Cornelius, then, it may be argued, had been, previously to the vision vouchsafed to him, a believer in the pro. mised Messiah; and through Him it was that his prayers and alms had gone up for a memorial before God.

Mr. Haldane closes his work with some statements, equally striking and just, concerning the various ways in which persons enjoying the light of the Gospel may reject the counsel of God against themselves. "By many who take the name of Christians," he says, "it is perverted, or abused, or neglected, or opposed;" and he proceeds to explain and illustrate what he comprehends under these several expressions.

He adverts, first, to a class of persons, who, while they imagine that they are Christians, wrest the religion of Christ to their own destruction. Their view of Christianity is, that, by means of the Saviour whom it presents, all men are brought into a salvable state; but that they are left to prepare themselves by repentance and reformation, and by this means render themselves in some measure worthy of Christ. Thus, on the ground of sincere, though imperfect, obedience, they make their peace with God: they do their part, in consequence of which God will do his. This very common and fatal error proceeds, he shews, on a radical mistake of these persons concerning their own character, and concerning the Divine character and law. They resemble the Israelites of old, over whose rejection of the Gospel St. Paul so feelingly lamented, while he bore them witness that they had a zeal of God, but not according CHRIST. OBSERV. No. 248.

to knowledge; "for they, being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, had not submitted themselves to the righteousness of God." The error of these persons concerning themselves is, their supposing that something good exists in their hearts, upon which the grace of God will work, when they shall have done their parts: and their error concerning the Divine character and law is, that they imagine God can, consistently with his perfections of holiness, justice, and truth, relax and lower the rule of obedience to their own imperfections. In consequence of these fundamental mistakes, they take a false view of justification. They suppose that they must qualify themselves for it, and obtain it by something which they are enabled to do. Thus, according to their view of the subject, they are justified partly in consequence of what they have done themselves, and partly on account of what Christ has done; his obedience making up the deficiency of theirs. This is, he shews, to reverse the whole order of the Gospel ; while it is also opposed to the Apostle's unequivocal declaration, that "if it be by grace, then it is no more of works, otherwise grace is no more grace."

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The class of persons who abuse the Gospel, he defines to be" those who profess to receive it, but do not walk according to it." They are described in Scripture as having a form of godliness, but denying the power of it; as professing to know God, but in works denying him; as hearers, but not doers of the word. They sit before God," says the Prophet, "as his people do, and hear his words, but they will not do them; for with their mouth they shew much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness." Such persons probably labour under some radical mistake concerning Divine truth, although, in many cases, it may not be possible for others to discover where it lies

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for, in that truth, the connection between real faith and works is clear and indisputable; the Gospel brings forth fruit in every man, from the day in which he knows the grace of God in truth." Their faith, therefore, is not real: in their hearts, which remain unchanged and unpurified, the love of the world, in one form or other, still reigns. How ever they may appear to be branches in the true Vine, their union with it is only apparent; they are not really grafted into it; and, therefore, receiving from it no sap or nourishment, they bring forth no fruit to perfection. Their situation is peculiarly awful. They may not be hypocrites, but are probably, in most cases, self-deceived. To these persons the address of Scripture is, "Awake, thou that sleepest, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light:" and to them are peculiarly applicable the awful denunciations of wrath against the workers of iniquity; against those who, while they say, "Lord, Lord," do not the things which he commands.

'Mr. Haldane describes next those who neglect the Gospel, as "persons who swim with the tide of the present world; who, engrossed with the business or the pleasures of life, give themselves no concern about a future state." In a country where the Christian religion is professed, these persons take the name of Christians; and in a Pagan or Mohamedan country, they would, as a matter of course, and as conducive to their ease or interest, profess Mohamedanism or Paganism. He enumerates some of the awful warnings and expostulations addressed to such persons in Scripture; adverting particularly to Job xxi. 7, and the following verses, and to the Rich Man and Lazarus, in our Lord's parable; and he then exposes some of the false interpretations of Scripture, by means of which persons in this state are accustomed to vindi

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and encourage themselves when reminded of their danger. On such, the important and impres

sive question proposed by St. Paul should be pressed, "How shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation?" The question of the Apostle shews that the negligent and careless should be warned by every consideration interesting and important to the human mind, to lay to heart the things which belong to their peace, before they be for ever hid from their eyes.

The other and last class to which our author adverts, comprises those who oppose the Gospel. "They are," he says, "generally such as are of a speculative turn of mind, and value themselves on being free from vulgar prejudices." He considers their opposition as proceeding not so much on the ground of want of evidence for the truth of Christianity, as on that of the diffi culties with which it appears to them to be encumbered, and which, according to their views of God and of themselves, render it incredible and unworthy of regard. Of these he intimates, that, by the pride of reason, and through "opposition of science falsely so called," the god of this world has blinded their minds, lest the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ should shine into them. If such persons attended to the dictates of that reason of which they boast so much, they would learn, that, on the supposition of God's vouchsafing any revelation to man, it is beforehand rendered highly probable, by the whole analogy of nature, that it would contain many disclosures very different from what we should have expected, and some which we should be unable to explain or fathom. Let it be conceded that some things incomprehensible present themselves in the Christian system; what other subject is there which is not encumbered with a like difficulty? It is the same in all the productions and operations of nature. At every step we meet something calculated to abase our pride and self-sufficiency. It is the same in every branch of human science. Nay, it is the same also in what

respects the most common functions of our own bodies. Is it, then, consistent with our boasted reason to reject the Gospel system-a system which treats of the fall and redemption of man, of the glorious perfections and infinite nature of Godbecause there are in it heights to which our finite powers cannot climb, and depths which they are unable to fathom? "Let no man," says Mr. Haldane, "deceive himself. It is not on account of the difficulties attending it that he rejects the Gospel. If it were so, he could not surmount similar difficulties in other cases. It is owing to the evil heart of unbelief rising in rebellion against that awful, yet consistent, view of the Divine Majesty given in the Scriptures, which, if admitted, would lay him low in the dust before God, and compel him to cry out, God be merciful to me a sinner.'"

We must now close our remarks on these interesting volumes. Their chief excellence, in our judgment, is, as we have stated at the commencement of our review, that they exhibit the evidences of Christianity in connection with a just and impressive delineation of Christianity itself; so that the reader is enabled to see at once the evidences and the nature of Divine truth. It seems to have been our author's design to set forth the Gospel both as the TRUTH of God, and as the GRACE of God which bringeth salvation. In that design he has completely succeeded.

Since the appearance of Mr. Haldane's volumes, another work (in 12mo, price 3s. 6d.) has issued from the Edinburgh press, (printed for Waugh and Innes), entitled "Remarks on the internal Evidence for the Truth of Revealed Religion, by Thomas Erskine, Esq. Advocate;" some interesting extracts from which were inserted in our vol. for 1820, p. 720. We regret, however, that we have been prevented from bringing the work

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more distinctly under the notice of our readers; but the judgment of the public has anticipated ours, and done justice to the author; for his valuable little volume has already passed through five or six editions in this country. It has also been published at Paris, in French, with a preface of some length from the pen of the Duchess de Broglie, the daughter of the distinguished Madame de Staël, which is no less honourable to the superior talents and discernment of that lady, than to the pious solicitude she appears to feel for the spiritual and eternal interests of her countrymen and countrywomen. She certainly could not have made choice of a work better calculated to produce an impression in favour of the Gospel, on candid and reflecting minds. It establishes, by arguments and analogies of the most powerful and convincing kind, that, while the external and internal evidences of Christianity harmonize and closely linked together, its truth might yet be satisfactorily demonstrated, independently of all external evidence of its Divine origin, by its coincidence with the moral constitution of the human mind; by its coincidence with the physical constitution of the human mind; and by its coincidence with the circumstances in which man is found in this world. The ground taken by Mr. Erskine is new, and perfectly distinct from that formerly occupied by Bishop Butler in his admirable work on the Analogy be tween Natural and Revealed Religion. We cannot, however, bestow a higher commendation on Mr. Erskine than to say, that the mantle of Butler appears to have fallen upon him. In one respect, indeed, he stands above that eminent writer: we mean, in the solid and affecting views which his little volume exhibits of the true nature and effects of the Gospel of Christ, We recommend it strongly, and without reserve, to our readers, not merely as an excellent antidote to

the poison of infidelity, but as calculated deeply to impress their hearts with the vital importance of Divine truth. We rejoice to learn that it is about to be translated also into the Italian and German lan guages, as well as into the French.

We take this opportunity of remarking, for the benefit of those who addict themselves to French literature, that not only the above work of Mr. Erskine's, but Mr. Wilberforce's work on

Christianity, under the title of "Le Christianisme des Gens du Monde mis en Opposition avec le véritable Christianisme," may be obtained at the library of Messrs. Treuttel and Wurtz, No. 30, Soho square; where may also be had a translation of Mrs. More's "Calebs" into excellent French.

The Life of William Hey, Esq., F. R. S., Member of the Royal College of Surgeons in London, &c. &c. By JOHN PEARSON, Esq., F. R. S., F. L. S., M. R. I., Member of the Royal College of Surgeons in London, &c. &c. London: Hurst and Co. 1822. 8vo. pp. 570. 18s.

FEW charges, whether true or false, are more calculated to cause painful sensations in the mind, than that, so often urged, of religious scepticism, or actual infidelity, among the members of the medical profession. To associate, even in imagination, one of the noblest and most enlightened professions that ever graced or blessed mankind, with a system of belief or of no belief, which is the bane and disgrace of human nature, has ever seemed to us the highest violation of all the unities which delight the soul. That an accurate investigation of some of the most perfect works of the Almighty Creator should be accompanied with a denial of many of his most essential attributes, if not of his very existence; that persons sent forth, like

angels of health, to alleviate the most distressing sufferings of humanity, and to sympathize with those whom they cannot heal,should be capable of stopping short at that point of benevolence which shuts out all consideration of spiritual health, and of immortal life beyond the grave; much more, that those who are daily conversant with the varied forms of sickness and death, by which the primæval curse is fully verified, and each man admonished of his own inevi table share in it, should be therefore the last to reflect on that state into which they see multitudes daily passing, and into which they must soon be gathered themselves; has always appeared to us a supposition so monstrous, and we would almost say incredible, that it is either a disgrace to the authors of so scandalous and heart-sickening a calumny, or a tenfold disgrace to any belonging to so distinguished a profession who may have given it the

shadow of foundation.

How much more accordant with every right feeling is the delightful picture presented to us in the present volume! When we see the portrait of the distinguished Mr. Hey of Leeds-a man distinguished no less for his professional skill than for his religious attainments— drawn by a hand altogether worthy of the task, both from kindred talents similarly exercised with the highest reputation, and also from a congenial spirit of true and enlightened piety; we behold things just in their proper character; we see one celebrated operator described as bending in reverence before that superior Power, whose prerogative it is to say, "I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal;" and we see another able fully to appreciate the talents of his friend, but rendering the highest homage to his piety and virtue, as to graces infinitely more valuable than his lofty professional deservings. This is as it should be: and if true philosophy, that which be

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